In brief

doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7461.308

BMJ 2004;329:308 (7 August), doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7461.308

News

In brief

Drug company fined: Schering-Plough has pleaded guilty and agreedto a $350m (£190m; ${euro}$ 290m) settlement for overcharging Medicaid,the US government programme for poorer people. The firm admittedgiving grants to private health providers for education andmarketing for patients on condition the providers bought itsdrugs at high prices (3 July, p 10).

MSF leaves Afghanistan: After suspending its 24 year missionin Afghanistan (12 June, p 1398) Médecins Sans Frontières(MSF) has finally pulled out completely. It blamed Kabul's failureto react to the deaths of five of its staff, and it denouncedcoalition "attempts to co-opt humanitarian aid," saying, "wesimply cannot sacrifice the security of our volunteers whilewarring parties seek to target and kill humanitarian workers."

Female president hits out at women doctors: Interviewed in theIndependent newspaper (2 August) Carol Black, president of theUnited Kingdom's Royal College of Physicians, said that thegrowing number of women doctors may be detrimental to the medicalprofession. She later told the BMJ, "Women are not specialisingin surgery or acute specialities. We must enable and encouragewomen into these specialties to prevent a future crisis." Seewww.news.independent.co.uk/

Department of Health issues contraception advice: Health professionalscan provide advice on contraception and sexual and reproductivehealth (including abortion) to someone aged under 16 withouttelling the patient's parents, says new guidance from the Departmentof Health for England. But the patient must "understand theadvice provided and its implications," and the doctor must considerthat the patient's health would suffer were the treatment notprovided. See "Contraception guidance" at www.dh.gov.uk